A VIRTUAL BEGINNING
After an unexpected ending to high school, many members of the Class of 2024 felt like they were in a weird place. They knew that high school was over, but their next chapter did not seem real. For most of them, their first page of Spring Hill would be from their own bedrooms as they would attend Spring Hill’s orientation virtually.
In the past, Badger Connection has been a weekend when prospective students and their families have the opportunity to stay at the hill and learn the ins and outs of being a badger. The summer of 2020 was one like no other, and the option of a traditional Badger Connection experience was thrown out the window when Governor Ivey prohibited gatherings of more than 10. Instead, like many other colleges that summer, Spring Hill would have to conduct their orientation through Zoom.
In the common room of Viragh Hall, a large group of 14 freshmen surrounds a circle table as they discuss their Badger Connection experience. Emmie Gage, from Lafayette,
Louisiana came to Spring Hill to play on the women’s tennis team remarked that “Badger Connection felt impersonal.” She described that going into orientation she thought it would be an opportunity for her to connect with others, “I thought it would give me the chance to make friends before coming to school, but it was hard to make a connection with anybody when their cameras were turned off.”
Ella Watts from Montgomery, Alabama chimed in with similar feelings, “I remember the first day of school people approached me saying, ‘you were in my orientation group’ because I was the only person with my camera on.” Watts noted that she had no idea how to respond to such comments because all she remembers from her orientation group were several black screens.
While Gage and Watts shared what it was like to be the only ones with their cameras on, most agreed that they kept their cameras off because that’s what everyone else was doing. Myles Cook commented that keeping the camera off was a good way of “playing it safe” and a way to avoid “sticking out.” Several around the room agreed with the sentiment of wanting to blend in over the Zoom call as they nodded their heads; however, some were more honest about why they kept their cameras off.
“It was too early for me,” said Jimmy Garmback, “so I slept through all of it.” The group laughed as they started to nod their heads and admit to not paying attention to the four-hour information session. Even though a majority of the students in the Viragh common room agreed that Badger Connection was impersonal and not a great start to their chapter at SHC they commended the orientation leaders for their effort.
“I felt bad for the BC Guides,” said Ronnie Bergeron, “you could tell they tried really hard to keep us engaged.” Although most remembered the virtual introduction as a dragged-out info session, the one thing that stood out to Bergeron was the scavenger hunt. “I remember going ham for it, as I scrambled around my house to find a shoe, a rock, or whatever they wanted us to grab. But besides the scavenger hunt, I don’t remember what we did.” Gabrielle Werner remembered the energy from the BC guides as they spout out historical facts about Spring Hill. Breanna Hamlin remarked on the guides being good sports even though her group experienced a series of technical difficulties.
These virtual orientations were the beginning of what would be the new normal for this freshmen class as they encountered difficulty with engagement, participation, and virtual connection. The discussion in the Viragh common room showed the freshmen’s disdain for having to connect with their new community virtually, but they hoped that come fall things would be different.
Breanna Hamlin
Jimmy Garmbeck
Myles Cook
